He tries to concentrate, she fortifies herself on the right: behind the troubles in Bennett and Shaked's relationship there is a strategic gap

Between the Citizenship Law and Ukraine's Refugee Policy, the interior minister has become accustomed to the government's troubling title, insisting that she have full backing from the PM, despite his public silence. The heart of the right

His dew

18/03/2022

Friday, 18 March 2022, 02:33 Updated: 09:55

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On Monday afternoon, while Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was conducting another of his international mediation talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, at a cabinet meeting there was a heated debate over the absorption of immigrants and refugees fleeing the fighting in Ukraine.

To be precise, not one argument, but a host of confrontations, disagreements and disputes between the ministers, and for nearly two hours, quite a few harsh and miserable remarks were thrown into the air;

From the European affiliation of Diaspora Minister Nachman Shai, to the white man's racism of Absorption Minister Pnina Temano Sheta, to the tasteless sexist joke of Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman about Ukrainianness.

Among the scandalous statements that starred in the erupting headlines, the focus of criticism was Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked, who in her words "holds the keys to the country," that is, a belief in its immigration policy.

In recent months, Shaked has been dubbed the coalition's "troublemaker," and in general, the internal debates in the government serve it well.

Any confrontation with the RAAM, Meretz or the Labor Party places it at the right ideological end of the government, presents and emphasizes its importance, and allows it to speak to the hearts of its members and former supporters in the right-wing bloc. The pioneers of criticism of the policy were the immediate suspects on the left, Nitzan Horowitz and Merav Michaeli, who from the beginning accused the interior minister of a rigid, bad and stingy approach, demanding the opening of borders to every Ukrainian who escaped the fighting. "A Wonderful Land" and the arguments with the opinion page of the "Haaretz" newspaper are not bad for those who want to keep the embers burning on the right, in the hope that in time they will forgive them for forming a government with the RAAM and the left.

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To the full article

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Trouble in a relationship.

Shaked and Bennett (Photo: Flash 90, Miriam Elster, Flash 90)

But in the refugee story she is attacked not only from the left, but also from the center and even from the right.

Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman calls for the gates to be opened freely as long as the fighting continues, and Housing Minister Zeev Elkin, a new hope, also fought hard for the abolition of quotas, warning that they contradict and jeopardize the visa waiver agreement with Ukraine.

Even Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, who was a full partner in formulating the initial outline, joined the criticism of the policy he himself formulated.

Between the political attacks and the legal restrictions, Shaked was eventually forced to change the outline, and announce the exemption of family members from the quotas, which would allow most Ukrainians wishing to do so to enter the country's gates.

And yet, the harsh sights of those who refused entry and candidates for deportation at Ben Gurion Airport, and the complaints about the indifference and opacity and bureaucratic difficulties of the Population and Immigration Authority, continue to accumulate on Shaked's desk, and with them the criticism of her government members.

While Shaked is snatching from all sides, Bennett, the party's chairman and close political partner for 15 years, is virtually absent from the debate. Among other things, he tried to mediate between her and Elkin. The face of the transfer of the Citizenship Law before the dissolution of the Knesset for recess last weekend.

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For her, after months of fierce coalition struggle, it was a huge political victory;

For him, it was mainly a headache in front of Meretz and Ra'am, which set a precedent of cooperation with the opposition with coalition freedom of vote, which could become dangerous, and certainly not praise and glorify. She has resigned under Norwegian law, so she has a good formal excuse, and so, whenever Bennett was summoned for a 40-period and periodic signature by the opposition, she preferred to be absent.

Shaked and Bennett have had a loyal tradition for the past 15 years, according to which they both make sure to wash the dirty laundry at home.

Their political relationship has gone through upheavals, ups and downs, but it's hard to get a bad word out of each other.

Even now, they consistently deny reports of stretching or distancing and claim to meet at least once a week and talk on a daily basis.

"I manage on my own," she said Monday in an interview with News 12, denying that there was any issue with the backing on the refugee issue.

"We work in partnership, he doesn't have to be interviewed and protect me in the studios, our relationship is good, everything is fine."

"I manage on my own."

Shaked (Photo: Walla !, Reuven Castro)

Still, behind the tweets there is a different story.

Since the formation of the government, as in the Citizenship Law, so too in immigration from Ukraine, Bennett and Shaked are pulling in opposite directions;

To begin with, he earned all the money and the international salon talks with Putin and Zelsky, while she, with the infamous abdominal pain, paid the heaviest political price and sits in government with Musi Raz and Walid Taha.

Now, he is trying to leverage the role of prime minister to recruit a new electorate from the center while she fortifies high on the ideological tree and hopes for a revival on the right.

Against the background of the political distancing, also the dominance of Bennett's political adviser, Shimrit Meir, who took Shaked's place as the strong woman who whispers in his ear, and is considered one of the thinkers of the concentration strategy - and the cooling of relations with Shaked.

But behind the troubles in Bennett and Shaked's relationship there is mostly a strategic gap, with a paradox that limits both: he is considered to burn on the right, while she believes she has a way back;

As long as she makes right muscles, he will have a hard time rising in the center, and without disengaging from him - she too will have a hard time making a comeback on the right.

MK Eli Avidar this week, once again, marked Shaked as the one who would overthrow the government before Lapid's rotation, as a kind of acceptance test that would open the doors for the Likud and the right. The greater the political-personal-strategic gap between her and Bennett, Will go and overcome.

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